Photo By Max Lonzanida | Newport News, Va. (January 26, 2024) ABF3 Dontavious Russell, assigned to PCU John F....... read more read more
Newport News, Va. (January 26, 2024) Sailors and Marines assigned to the Huntington Hall Naval Berthing Facility in Newport News have a renovated gym floor just in-time for intramural basketball season to start. The renovated gym floor and other quality of life enhancements are the result of efforts by Naval Weapons Station Yorktown’s Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) department, Commander Naval Installations Command, Navy Region Mid-Atlantic and Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) Newport News Shipbuilding among others.
Danielle Ricker, NWS Yorktown’s MWR Director provided some insights to the quality of life renovations. “We were really looking to refresh and renew the basketball court and the MWR areas inside of Huntington Hall. We hadn’t done a refresh since 2010, so last July we completed the purchase of new fitness and recreational equipment,” said Rickner.
“One of the last pieces was getting the floor refinished, and that was a joint effort between CNIC, CNRMA, and the shipyard,” noted Rickner. It was noted that during the visit the sound of basketballs being dribbled on the shiny gym floor reverberated throughout our interview. From the upper mezzanine, one could clearly see the NWS Yorktown command logo painted prominently on the center court. The recently refinished gym floor consisted of sanding the previous finish down, painting new lines, and the application of several coats of durable finish; this occurred over the course of three weeks. The basketball court and its beaming newly refinished floor opened back up just after the start of the New Year.
Historic records indicate that the sprawling multi-story building that is today Huntington Hall Naval Berthing Facility originally opened to serve high school students as Newport News High School in 1923. It was constructed on the grounds of horse stables which was later a U.S. Army camp. Scores of students were educated at Newport News High School since then. It closed its doors to students in 1980, and was eventually acquired by the shipyard as a berthing facility. Today, Sailors and Marines recreate, rest, recharge, and maintain optimal fitness levels inside of the sprawling facility that was once a high school.
These quality of life improvements were the result of listening to what Sailors and Marines wanted at Huntington Hall. “We did some early discussions and a few focus groups,” said Rickner. “We also did some one on one discussions to find out what kind of upgrades they wanted. We saw the same theme; new equipment, new carpet, new flooring in the gym.”
The shiny gym floor wasn’t the only facet that was upgraded. “We got new PS-5 consoles, we did some upgrading to the recreational laptops that they can check out, and we even upgraded to faster wi-fi service. MWR pays for the wi-fi for the recreation and fitness center through our contract with NEXCOM and its free for them to use.”
Huntington Hall’s MWR Fitness Director, Matt Palandro echoed the excitement of the newly resurfaced gym floor. “The old floor was very dingy, and our court now is a lighter court now and it brings out the space. Sailors are also excited to use the court. They have been using the court for PT, group fitness classes and activities such as dodgeball. It really has brought up the morale at this facility here,” he concluded. Additional on-site amenities include a mini Navy Exchange store, a Fleet & Family Services Center, collaboration spaces, offices, a small movie theater, and MWR facilities. On the court at the time of our walkthrough of the newly refinished gym floor was ABF3 Dontavious Russell. Russell, assigned to the U.S. Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, PCU John F. Kennedy (CVN 79), did several layups and shot the ball through the net on the court of the region’s newest resurfaced gym floor.
Palandro pointed out some new equipment which received rave reviews from the Sailors who use them during their off duty hours. Down the hall from the main fitness and recreation center was an ancillary fitness area, complete with a row of new stationary bikes, yoga mats, kettle weights, and a host of other fitness equipment. Palandro even noted that this particular space had the potential to morph into a dojo or a pilates area equating to more fitness options for Sailors and Marines. Additional free weights and kettles of varying weights lined the interior of the aptly nicknamed box at the end of the outdoor track. Palandro noted that the box, with its roll up doors and rubber matting, is another popular space for service members to use. Some of that new equipment is slated for relocation this summer, when a new covered outdoor fitness area is slated to be installed; complete with solar lighting powered by panels on the roof, built in-storage, and engineered to be hurricane proof should one choose to pursue fitness in foul weather.
Overall these quality of life enhancements to the fitness and recreation spaces aim to re-invigorate the repertoire off duty offerings for the Sailors and Marines who visit and are berthed there while their respective warships are in the shipyard at Huntington Ingalls Industries Newport News Shipbuilding.
| Date Taken: | 01.26.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 01.26.2024 20:06 |
| Story ID: | 462565 |
| Location: | NEWPORT NEWS , VA, US |
| Web Views: | 90 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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